As the nation braces for the economic fallout of the coronavirus outbreak, the government's ambitious Central Vista redevelopment project in Lutyens' Delhi is under the scanner with several opposition leaders slamming the Rs 20,000 crore venture as a vanity project and a postponable luxury in times of crisis.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and made various suggestions for fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, including suspending the Central Vista beautification and construction project forthwith.
At a time like this, such an outlay seems self-indulgent to say the least. I am certain that Parliament can function comfortably within the existing historical buildings. There is no urgent or pressing requirement that cannot be postponed until this crisis is contained, Gandhi said.
This sum could instead be allocated towards constructing new hospital infrastructure and diagnostics along with equipping frontline workers with Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and better facilities, she said in her letter.
Several opposition leaders have been criticising the government's move of going ahead with the project and the issue was back in focus on Monday with the Centre's decision to suspend Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS) Funds for two years.
Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel and party MP Karti Chidambaram on Monday slammed the government over the Central Vista project amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
While Patel said the central government can save more than Rs 20,000 crore by scrapping the Central Vista redevelopment project, Chidambaram said the BJP's vanity projects should be shut.
CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury has also been a vehement critic of the Central Vista project and responding to the suspension of MPLADS funds, he tweeted, If there's no money with the government, why doesn't it abandon the Central Vista project in Delhi? Does it deserve a higher priority than lives of lakhs of Indians?
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